WWE Superstar Power Rankings for 7/7/2014

In the week after Money in the Bank, there was plenty of movement in the WWE Superstar Power Rankings. There were big returns, title matches and plenty of intrigue as we head into Battleground, which is just a few weeks away.

As an FYI, Bad News Barrett was pulled from the rankings completely after it was revealed he had been forced to relinquish the Intercontinental Championship due to injury. Here's hoping Barrett makes a speedy and full recovery.

We'll get into all that and more in the following slides. Before we do, though, please read how these rankings work.

Holding a championship, being a No. 1 contender or holding a Money in the Bank briefcase counts for much of a wrestler's ranking, and they are therefore the most heavily weighted components in these rankings. If a wrestler is tied with another wrestler, holding a title will be a tiebreaker.

Wins and losses account for the bulk of the week-to-week movement—wins and losses are, after championships, the most important component of the rankings. The quality of a wrestler's opponents and whether they are ranked or not is considered in the week-to-week movement.

"Getting the better" of someone—like beating someone down—as well as "getting got" also counts, though not as much as wins and losses. Being "over" with the fans is considered, but not heavily weighted in the ranking decisions. Pay-per-view performances take on added importance.

Only the top 10 wrestlers are ranked. Wrestlers on the "Watch List" were considered for top 10 status but were ultimately nixed. They are unranked, and their listing is in no particular order.

Generally speaking,these rankings do not break kayfabe, though any major non-storyline information (serious injury, WWE Wellness Policy violations, legitimate hirings, firings, contract information, "sabbaticals," etc.) may be taken into consideration, especially if WWE confirms them publicly. Nothing that could be explicitly considered a spoiler is included, unless WWE acknowledges it as well.

All WWE shows, televised or digitally distributed, as well as anything from WWE.com, the WWE App, the WWE Network and any WWE or Superstar social media accounts that don't break kayfabe may be taken into consideration for these rankings.

Watch List

After a rough week, Cesaro drops out of the top 10. He lost to Kofi Kingston on Raw, which sent him into a rage. He then teamed with RybAxel in a loss to Rob Van Dam, Big E and Dolph Ziggler. He will be in the Intercontinental Championship Battle Royal at Battleground, so he will have his next shot at gold later this month.

Bo Dallas

Now 12-0 in WWE, Bo Dallas picked up another win this week against Diego of Los Matadores. He's paying Daniel Bryan a lot of attention these days, but with Bryan out for an indefinite amount of time, who knows if anything will ever come of that. Can Bo Dallas get himself inserted into the IC title Battle Royal?

Jack Swagger

Jack Swagger is once again getting the opportunity to prove he can be a tough, hard-nosed competitor against high-level talent. With the crowd getting behind him, he's gearing up for a battle with Rusev, who will be his biggest opponent in a while. He's gotten the best of Rusev a couple of times now, but can that translate to in-ring success?

Randy Orton is set to get his rematch for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship later this month at Battleground, where he'll face John Cena, Roman Reigns and Kane in a Fatal 4-Way match. But aside from that, he continues to go without wins in his matches. Can Orton pick up a few wins before Battleground?

10. Rusev

Rusev moves back into the top 10 this week. He picked up a win over "Bruce Springsteen," but was run off by Jack Swagger a couple of times this past week.

Rusev now seems poised to feud with Swagger, who is a tough competitor with a strong athletic background, not to mention he's a former world champion. Rusev is finally getting an opponent who will push him to the limit. Can he emerge victorious?

9. Dolph Ziggler

Dolph Ziggler is having a bit of a moment as of late. And this week he picked up two more wins and has gotten himself inserted into the Intercontinental Championship Battle Royal at Battleground.

Ziggler has to be seen as a favorite to win the IC title, seeing as he's held the title before and is also a former world champion. He hasn't gotten too many chances to shine lately, so he'd best make the most of this one.

8. AJ Lee

AJ Lee made a triumphant return to WWE this past Monday, challenging Paige to a rematch for the Divas Championship. She was granted that rematch and won, becoming a two-time Divas Champion.

Later in the week on SmackDown, she defeated Eva Marie via submission. Now, she'll have to watch out for Paige, who will be due a rematch. It's likely that will come at Battleground, but it's not yet set in stone.

7. The Usos

The Usos move up one spot this week by default. With Paige, Bad News Barrett and Cesaro dropping from the top 10, the Usos benefitted, even after a loss to the Wyatts while teaming with Sheamus on Raw.

Will their feud with The Wyatts continue? Will they have to defend their titles against them again at Battleground?

6. Dean Ambrose

Dean Ambrose drops one spot after being leapfrogged by The Wyatts, because he had a generally good week. During Raw on June 30 he told Seth Rollins that he would "haunt" him, and Ambrose made good on that promise later on Raw when he prevented Rollins from cashing in on a wounded Cena.

On SmackDown he faced off against Randy Orton, but the match was called off when Rollins attacked Dean Ambrose during the match. Ambrose got beat down and was saved by Roman Reigns. As he continues to feud with Rollins, can he keep from getting caught by The Authority's superior numbers?

5. The Wyatts

The Wyatts are getting back on track after a rough go of it lately. This week they picked up two wins and look to be building momentum.

On Raw, they defeated The Usos and Sheamus in a six-man tag team match. Then they decimated Chris Jericho, who made his return to WWE on Monday. On Main Event, Rowan and Harper defeated Xavier Woods and R-Truth.

Now Bray Wyatt looks to be set to face Jericho, and Rowan and Harper could get another shot at the WWE Tag Team Championship. Things are looking up at the moment, but can they keep the momentum?

4. Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns is looking more and more dominant every week. On Raw he teamed with John Cena in a match against Kane and Randy Orton, though the match got called off after Kane destroyed Cena outside the ring. After Seth Rollins tried to cash in on Cena, Reigns returned to spear Kane.

Then on SmackDown he brawled with Orton and Rollins while helping Ambrose, and then later saved Ambrose from a beat down, spearing Orton in the process. He stared down Triple H and stood tall in the ring. Will he face Triple H at Battleground? Or even at SummerSlam?

3. Sheamus

Sheamus got off to a tough start this past week, teaming with The Usos in a loss to The Wyatt Family on Raw. But his week got better from there.

He was put in a match on SmackDown in which he defended the United States Championship against Alberto Del Rio, and he was successful in retaining his title. Will he defend his title at Battleground? If so, who will his opponent be going forward?

2. Seth Rollins

Seth Rollins continues to show why The Authority picked him to be their man in the ring. On Raw he defeated Rob Van Dam and then cut a promo on the fans, which was interrupted by Dean Ambrose. Later that night he would be thwarted in a cash-in attempt by Ambrose. There will be more opportunities for Rollins, though.

On SmackDown he brawled with Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose, and then with Ambrose again later in the evening. He was run off by Reigns, but the damage to Ambrose was done.

Seth Rollins continues to impress in the ring and appears to be smart enough to know when to fight and when to get out of Dodge. Can he keep winning? And when will he get his next opportunity to cash in?

1. John Cena

John Cena made one appearance this past week, and it didn't exactly go well for him. It was not enough to cause him to fall in the rankings, but he did have a tough week.

On Raw he was in the ring with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, where he was announced as the cover man of WWE 2K15. But he rejected the overtures offered to him, instead saying he'd give Daniel Bryan a title shot. He was rewarded with a Fatal 4-Way title match at Battleground.

Later on Raw he teamed with Roman Reigns against Kane and Randy Orton in a match that would ultimately break down and be called off. He was then decimated by Kane and was spared losing his title to a Rollins cash-in thanks to Roman Reigns, who will be one of his opponents (along with Orton and Kane) at Battleground.

Can Cena get back to his winning ways this week? And can he keep Seth Rollins at bay?